You probably thought I had forgotten about this episode since it's been a while since I did the first OVA of TO. This OVA story is more of an interesting twist on Romeo and Juliet were two star struck lovers end up causing everyone to die however there's an interesting twist and most of them all come back to life thanks to fungi. While the first OVA spent it's time on a large orbital space station and featured an attack by terrorists Symbiotic Planet of course spends it's time on a newly discovered planet set to be terraformed by two groups of different nations science and military outposts.
The Romeo and Juliet plot is the backbone of this OVA set on a newly discovered planet two groups of separate governments are based on this planet to find a way to terraform the planet to be used by humans. A UN group is inbound to help delegate a meeting between the two groups for a joint operation. Outside of these two groups is the daughter of the lead diplomat from one group and a young research scientist from the other group. They regularly meet each other outside the compounds and have grown attached to each other. However they are both forbidden from seeing each other so they are looking forward to the possibility of meeting each other during the joint meeting. Something goes wrong in the young researchers lab and he and his lab are contaminated by the exotic fungi that he was researching and are quarantined.
While the talks are breaking down the other side's military planners find out about the fungi outbreak and decide to eliminate the problem of the other group by unleashing the fungi on everyone. The military makes it's escape while leaving the diplomate and her daughter behind. Making their escape they soon find out that they haven't gotten clean away and after ordering their military to bomb the second base for the greater good the find out that they too are infected and soon crash killing them all.
As it turns out the Fungi are actually helpful after going though a very painful process the Fungi turn out to be a good thing but now the base is in jeopardy from the bombers. While working to get the bases defenses are starting up a group of alien orbs one of which is friends with the young scientist instead decide to help save the humans by sacrificing them selves. With the military members dead the bombers destroyed and everyone who was infected by the fungi finally back to normal they discover that the Fungi have mutated so to form a symbiotic relationship with the humans which is what the planet works best to do.
I liked this one because it's a lot more colorful and interesting than the first one even if I don't care for the Romeo and Juliet aspect. The planet CGI is probably some of the best looking background images that I've seen and the bomber flight is just plain eyecandy. I think in this one the humans look a little bit better but still seem to move and twitch rather oddly at times. As a set it would be interesting to check it out on a HD TV set instead of my computer screen so I'd really like to see this on DVD/BD but like I said in the first review I don't think this will be licensed here in States it's just not a big name ticket or moe enough to be picked up. Oh well.
here is the trailer for the second OVA Symbiotic Planet:
